This is the legendary 1945 Dated
Krieghoff, one of first post-war made at the Suhl plant After the
war the area was captured by the Americans and although it was
designated as part of the Soviet zone the Americans occupied it for
a time; a sufficient time to continue to produce guns for the US
military. This was the last of the Krieghoff Lugers and the fine quality of Krieghoff is still evident. This is a Chamber Dated
1945 Krieghoff,
made for the German Luftwaffe from over run parts based on the 10,000 gun
contract that was ostensively finished in 1938 with the shipment of
the last 50 guns. This is a 1908 Model, 7.65mm
with a 4" (100mm) Barrel. (1223)

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In 1934 the Luftwaffe
announced it was seeking bids for military pistols. It is assumed
that Krieghoff had acquired the old Erfurt Luger tooling from Simpson to
enable it to contract for only 10,000 Lugers in 9mm. The chamber
date places the assembly as an
example of the original military contract.

Reichmarshall Hermann Göering as
Commander-in-Chief of the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) was directly
involved in the contract with Heinrich Krieghoff as the corporate head
of Reichwerke Hermann Göering which let Luftwaffe contracts.

Göering entered the army in 1914 as an
Infantry Lieutenant, before being transferred to the air force as a
combat pilot. The last Commander in 1918 of the Richthofen Fighter
Squadron, Göering distinguished himself as an air ace, credited with
shooting down twenty-two Allied aircraft. Awarded the Pour le Merite and
the Iron Cross (First Class), he ended the war as a much decorated pilot
and war hero.

The post war Krieghoffs differed from
the war time models in that the serial numbers were all exposed. There
were no numbers on the left of the chamber nor were there military proof
marks on the guns.

Here you can see the highly defined
five pointed rejection star which means this Luger was started during
the war, failed a inspection and had gone back to the line for some
repair bearing the 1945 date. The Crown N is the early completion
stamp before the war and was probably all that was available that was
not a Nazi proof.

The Scriptic "S" one the extractor is
a recognizable proof from the 1934 Mauser which further illustrates the
theory that Mauser spare parts were being used up in these last days of
the war. It might also reflect on the Kü variations that had both
Mauser proofs and Krieghoff proofs. Mauser shut down their
Parabellum line after November 1942 Krieghoff continued to assemble
Lugers until the American Army was entering the plant.

The inside of this Luger is in Very
Good condition. Note the absence of military proofs; this is a
very early post war gun made for the occupation forces from
Krieghoff parts while the factory was still in United States
possession. Someone recognized the value of this gun and
it has been well cared for over the last 63 years.

Here is a side by side comparison
of the 1945 Krieghoff with the gun on the left (for sale) being a
reject with the five pointed star, a Crown N post war proof but the
1945 chamber date. The one on the right is a war time
Krieghoff with the Stage II proofs of the late war and acceptance
proof.

Note the small "03" in the early font proof on the
sear. No proofs on the exterior of the toggles as during wartime.

Military Krieghoff
Lugers bear serial numbers of one through five digits without any suffix.
They began military production in 1935 with the "S" Code at serial number
1 and continued consecutively upward until approximately 13158 (known) in early
1945. The serial numbers overlapped "variations" as defined by
collectors and require some study to be certain the exact variation one is
looking at.

In August 1945, units of
the American 11th Division overran the Krieghoff factory at Suhl.
The only damage reported was vandalism and looting by foreign labor
celebrating their liberation. There was no resistance to cause damage by
the American forces and it had never been bombed due to the inability of
the Allied Air Forces to locate the plant. The military governor of
Suhl from Sept-Dec 1945 was a Captain from the 563rd AAA Battalion. He
documents that several of the craftsmen of Krieghoff were allowed to
re-enter the factory and under guard assemble several Luger pistols as
gives for the members of the Military Government. Randall Gibson has documented in
his book that this group numbered only twelve (12) guns and you are
looking at #3.

Serial number placement is in the
military ("exposed") style.
Gibson reported just 200 dated 1945 Lugers were finished before the
factory was overrun by units of the American 11th Division.

The thumb
safety is marked "Gesichert" and safe is in the down position.
The extractor is marked "Geladen." This Luger has
all matching numbers. The barrel is
numbered, caliper marked and nitro proofed Clean and finely
struck.

This is an extraordinary variation
of a very rare and seldom seen 1945 Krieghoff as the very first of
the post war guns (#3) but with the same craftsmanship of the
Krieghoff firm delivered before, during and post WWII.

The last of the "P" Codes or the
beginning of the post-war Krieghoff's with the "03" serial number.
By the end of the war the magazines were the FXO style in black and
sometimes a chocolate dark brown with no markings.

By the end of the war Krieghoff had begun to use the
Type IV magazine, as Mauser had left over stocks. They were
not proofed as E37 or FXO but were blank with the black or dark
brown bottom.

There are believed to be seven different
variations of the Krieghoff
Logo used during WWII with the first, as the last 1945 P-Code with
just the anchor and "SUHL" (the city of manufacture). One the
left is the '45 P-Code for sale and one the right is a 1945 military
featured in our "Archives" section.

Too few to know is probably the
best description for this Luger. It uses the then current 1945 frame
that has been star coded for non-military use and the Crown N as an
early pre-Nazi completed proof. A serial number of P-03 puts in the
front of the line and with the minty condition this Luger must have
been a presentation to some American who was first to the factory
and who gave it a good home for many years. Any questions to
josef@phoenixinvestmentarms.com